Competition, subsidies and trade remedies in the draft UK - EU FTA

The UK Government has made its version of an EU -UK FTA available to the public (link below), and not surprisingly it differs dramatically from the text proposed by the EU.

I have restricted myself for now to a quick look at subsidies, competition and trade remedies. I say a quick look, but in fact not much time is required, because the texts on these three issues together total seven pages.

The UK's approach on subsidies and competition (Articles 21 & 22) is minimalist. A smidgen of transparency, a few consultation requirements, a dash of coordination, a carve-out from dispute settlement to ensure it’s not enforceable. This is a far cry from the regulatory symmetry sought by the EU, and, in respect to subsidies, falls short even of recent EU FTAs with Japan, Korea and Viet Nam, which contain various innovations regarding subsidies to ailing companies, to/by SOES, etc..

Not surprisingly, therefore, disciplines on trade remedies (Article 4) are also minimal, barely more than WTO rules. Beyond a bit of supplemental disclosure, the only significant commitment is to consider information about public interest in AD/CVD cases, something both jurisdictions already do. Even use of the lesser duty rule seems hortatory (“may”), perhaps reflecting that the EU has been backing off its use in recent years.

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The UK Government has made its version of an EU -UK FTA available to the public (link below), and not surprisingly it differs dramatically from the text proposed by the EU.

I have restricted myself for now to a quick look at subsidies, competition and trade remedies. I say a quick look, but in fact not much time is required, because the texts on these three issues together total seven pages.

The UK's approach on subsidies and competition (Articles 21 & 22) is minimalist. A smidgen of transparency, a few consultation requirements, a dash of coordination, a carve-out from dispute settlement to ensure it’s not enforceable. This is a far cry from the regulatory symmetry sought by the EU, and, in respect to subsidies, falls short even of recent EU FTAs with Japan, Korea and Viet Nam, which contain various innovations regarding subsidies to ailing companies, to/by SOES, etc..

Not surprisingly, therefore, disciplines on trade remedies (Article 4) are also minimal, barely more than WTO rules. Beyond a bit of supplemental disclosure, the only significant commitment is to consider information about public interest in AD/CVD cases, something both jurisdictions already do. Even use of the lesser duty rule seems hortatory (“may”), perhaps reflecting that the EU has been backing off its use in recent years.